Pubdate: Mon, 18 Aug 2014
Source: Maclean's Magazine (Canada)
Pages: 14-15
Copyright: 2014 Maclean Hunter Publishing Ltd.
Contact:  http://www.macleans.ca/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/253
Author: Jonathon Gatehouse

The Interview: MARIJUANA ACTIVISTS MARC AND JODIE EMERY

Marc and Jodie Emery on life in jail, their role in the legalization
movement and the plan to seek 'political revenge'

Marc Emery's two decades of marijuana activism and entrepreneurship
have earned him the nickname "The Prince of Pot" and 23 trips to jail.
The most recent, a 4 1/2-year stint in U.S. federal custody for his
mail-order pot seed business, is now at an end. Awaiting deportation
back to Canada, he spoke to Maclean's about his plans for the future
from inside a Louisiana detention centre. His wife and fellow
activist, Jodie Emery, joined in from their Vancouver home.

Q: Marc, you were released on July 9. What's the holdup in getting you
back to Canada?

ME: It's just bureaucracy. It's all about my passport. And of course,
the reason I don't have one is the Canadian government took it away
from me when I was arrested in 2005. I was brought here by Canadian
officials and delivered to American officials. They know who I am.
They know I'm here.

Q: How will you get home?

ME: The Department of Homeland Security will pick me up, take me to
the New Orleans airport and deliver me to Detroit. Then U.S. marshals
will pick me up and drive me through the tunnel and drop me off at the
border. It's like Checkpoint Charlie.

JE: I'm hoping Mark can phone me the day before-that's the soonest
we'll get notice-and then I'll run to the airport and fly to Toronto
and get to Windsor. This happens to a lot of Canadians who are
incarcerated abroad. The government moves very slowly.

Q: Marc, you made a plea deal with U.S. prosecutors in 2010 that would
have seen you serve part of your sentence in a Canadian jail. What
happened to that agreement?

ME: I've had three Conservative MPs get up in the House and denounce
me in the past year and point out that there was no way they were
bringing me back on the treaty exchange. The government was actually
legally obligated to take me back on a transfer that the U.S. had approved.

JE: But they just delayed on the paperwork and never answered.
Finally, the U.S. government wrote to Marc and said they were closing
the file.

Q: The Americans went to some extraordinary lengths to have you
charged.

ME: They spent a huge amount of money. Drug Enforcement Administration
agents in 48 states bought seeds from me. And they had an agent come
to Vancouver and buy seeds from me in person over a period of a year
and a half. They had confidential informants and people who had grown
pot who were going to testify against me. They did so much work that
they knew, right down to the dollar, how much money I had donated to
U.S. pot activists over the past five years. When we did a Freedom of
Information request, the DEA said they had 6,000 pages on me. And all
along, the Canadian government was declining to prosecute me at home.
But they were actively working with the DEA to have me extradited.

JE: The Vancouver PD were getting money from the DEA. They were
billing the DEA for rental vehicles and parking tickets. They tried to
get [Marc] to sell them some pot, but he wouldn't. They wanted it to
be less politically obvious.

Q: You were convicted twice for selling seeds in Canada and received
small fines. But the Canada Revenue Agency was treating your business
like it was at least quasi-legal. You were paying taxes, weren't you?

ME: Absolutely. I paid $588,000 in personal income tax from 1999 to
2005, strictly on my seed business alone. In fact, when I got busted
in 2005, I owed them $125,000 more from when I sponsored the entire
B.C. Marijuana Party campaign in 2001 and paid for all 79 candidates.
I took money from the company and gave it to myself to give to the
party, and incurred a tax debt. I was giving the CRA $15,000 a month.
After I got busted, we had a meeting and they asked, "Marc, how soon
can you start selling seeds again so we can get your tax payments back
on schedule?" The CRA were so upset when I told them the judge
wouldn't let me. Now, with all the penalties and interest, I owe about
$300,000 to the federal government.

Q: You gave $5 million to legalization efforts in the States and
Canada. Seeing what's happened in places like Colorado and Washington
state since you've been imprisoned, do you feel like it was well-spent?

ME: In Colorado especially, because in 2000 I paid for the collection
of a large number of the signatures that got their medical marijuana
initiative on the ballot, and that really jump-started their movement.
I gave money for ballot campaigns in Washington, D.C., Arizona and
Alaska. We gave money to all sorts of groups for state and national
initiatives.

Q: In 2012, John McKay, the U.S. attorney who drew up the indictment
against you, came out in favour of legalization and even made an
appearance with Jodie. Was that ironic, or satisfying, or both?

ME: It's satisfying now, but it was upsetting at the
time.

JE: Right after Marc got extradited, [McKay] wrote an editorial for a
Seattle paper where he called for the legalization of marijuana. Then
we both testified before the state legislature. Afterward, I thanked
him for taking a stand. Later, he agreed to come up to Vancouver and
hold a press conference. He ended up being one of the main sponsors of
Washington's bill. I understand why Marc was upset. It was annoying at
first. But it's nice to have your enemy admit that they did wrong.

Q: Has prison changed you?

ME: I had a special experience in my 4 1/2 years in prison. I never
heard an unkind word. Inmates were exceptionally nice to me; kind and
thoughtful. I never encountered any violence or threats. I was never
dealt with in an unkind manner by prison guards. I had 81 visits from
Jodie. I was taught how to play the bass guitar and ended up in a band
with these really good musicians, and now I have a repertoire of about
120 songs. I have a lot of strangely fond memories of prison and my
experience there.

Q: Is it true that you stopped smoking pot while in
jail?

ME: Yup. You can get whatever kind of drugs you want, but I stayed
well away from that. I was always convinced I would be tested the day
after, and a whole world of hurt comes down on you if you fail. You go
to solitary for three to six months. You lose three months of good
behaviour time and phone privileges. You lose visits for a year and
get a disciplinary transfer. And you get charged, which can add years
to your sentence.

Q: Are you going to start smoking again?

ME: Oh, as soon as I get home. But I only want to smoke the worst,
weakest marijuana, and not much of it at all, because I need to be
able to do interviews, stay upright for speaking and meet all my
well-wishers. I'll have to ease in gently. There will be no bong hits
at all for several days.

Q: Jodie, since Marc has been in jail, you've been running the
business and become the face of the legalization movement in Canada.
Has his time away changed you?

JE: When I got involved with Marc, I knew there were unknowns ahead.
That he was always going to be an activist who would get into trouble.
But I've never planned out my life. I take what comes, and I've been
kind of enjoying it. I don't have hobbies or friends or a social
circle. And before I met Marc, I never dated or had a boyfriend. I've
always just been focused on issues.

Q: You recently announced your intention to seek the federal Liberal
nomination in Vancouver East. The party reaction was kind of cool.
Have you filed the papers yet?

JE: I've sent an online request for them. I understand why they're
nervous. But with marijuana being such a big issue, I think I could be
a really good spokesperson to defend Justin Trudeau from all the attacks.

Q: Marc, you've said that you want to seek some "political revenge"
when you get back. How?

ME: I'll be campaigning against the Conservative government in any way
I can. I'm going on a campus tour in January and February, and I'll be
telling people to join the Liberal party and support them. In
September and October next year, we'll be touring cities on a daily
basis, speaking at election rallies. I plan to be very actively
engaged in the run-up to the next election in October 2015. My other
big job will be earning a living. I've got substantial debts, so I'll
be at our [Vancouver Cannabis Culture] store, drawing customers in,
adding my flair.

Q: Are you going back into the seed business?

ME: We will, but on a more limited basis. Twenty years ago, I was the
only person selling seeds in Canada. Now there are dozens. And this
whole ordeal has forced the closure of my beloved magazine, Cannabis
Culture. I used to put my catalogue in there. So I don't have nearly
the audience I once did.

Q: There's also been talk of a reality TV show . . 
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MAP posted-by: Jo-D